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Universal secondary education, schooling and women ’s empowerment: Evidence from Uganda

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  • Kazibwe, Douglas
  • Li, Jinhu

Abstract

We evaluate the long-term effects of Uganda’s 2007 Universal Secondary Education (USE) policy, which expanded secondary education access through tuition-fee elimination and increased school capacity. Using a difference-in-differences approach, we exploit variations in birth cohorts and regional exposure to identify the policy’s causal impacts on women’s educational attainment and empowerment. Our results show significant gains in education and empowerment for women in areas with greater program intensity. We also find improvements in women’s labour market outcomes, and in marriage and fertility including delayed age at first sex, birth, cohabitation, and spouse schooling differences. These findings highlight the potential for governments in sub-Saharan Africa to leverage secondary education investments in generating sustained improvement in women’s empowerment.

Suggested Citation

  • Kazibwe, Douglas & Li, Jinhu, 2025. "Universal secondary education, schooling and women ’s empowerment: Evidence from Uganda," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:deveco:v:174:y:2025:i:c:s030438782500015x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2025.103464
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Universal secondary education; Women’s empowerment; Human capital;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I26 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Returns to Education
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy
    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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